Chapter 15: We Need More Power!
Old Mombasa
"Scottie, get Shiela moving!" Wrall yelled.
"I'm trying, Captain!" Scottie wailed along with Shiela's engines. "She just isn't responding!"
Wrall turned to his gunner. "Kazi…"
"On it, Captain!" Kazi powered up the turret and aimed it at the incoming Banshees. "Shion! Airburst rounds, and keep them coming!"
The autoloader hummed and Wrall could hear the familiar thump of a fresh shell being loaded into the cannon.
"Loaded!" Shion yelled enthusiastically.
Kazi launched the airburst shell directly at the approaching Banshees. Unlike conventional tank shells, airburst shells were designed specifically for anti-aircraft purposes. They would explode after traveling a preset distance or if the sensor imbedded in the shell detects a nearby solid object, sending high-velocity shrapnel in all directions. Unfortunately, the Banshees were not going to fall for the same trick twice. They broke off and spread out to reduce the chances of all of them being taken out by a single shot. The shell passed through the air and exploded, but did no significant damage.
"I think I got it now!" Scottie yelled.
"Then move!" Wrall yelled back.
Scottie pushed down on the accelerator, but the engines mewed weakly and the tank moved at a slow crawl.
"Scottie, we need more power!" Wrall yelled. "We're getting nowhere here!"
"I'm giving the engines all she's got, sir!"
There was a roaring sound as Kazi fired another round at the Banshees. One of them was forced to break off as it was firing its fuel rod, spoiling its aim. The fuel rod landed just five meters away from Shiela, turning the pavement into a molten crater.
"Damn it, that's it." Karla muttered as she saw the bomb fall. "Move in! We have to cover them!"
So far, she was armed with three Warthogs. Two were equipped with 30mm autocannons and one had a 25mm gauss cannon. It wasn't much but it was all she had. The Banshees, surprised by the sudden appearance of the new threat, broke off their attack run and attempted to retreat. However, they were cut down by a storm of 30mm rounds and airburst shrapnel. Meanwhile, the gauss-armed Warthog was firing shots at the incoming Wraiths, the armor-piercing metal rods inflicting gruesome damage.
"Wrall, what the hell are you doing in there?" Karla screamed into her radio. "Get that goddamn tank moving or I'll leave you out for the Covenant!"
As if spurred on by Karla's words, Sheila suddenly roared to life as it reached full power. It suddenly shot backwards as the tank reversed into a sheltered alley. Karla was about to give the fallback order when plasma bolts started raining down. Karla looked on in horror as her two fellow Warthogs were engulfed and destroyed. The gauss-armed Warthog took a direct hit and was reduced to slag. There were no chances of surviving a like that. However, the remaining Warthog managed to avoid the deadly energy bolt, but flipped over after the resulting blast. Karla quickly drove over to inspect the crash. The driver was clearly dead, with half of his body just seared flesh. The gunner, who had neglected to put on her safety harness, was thrown clear of the vehicle but Karla could see that her head was twisted in a position that wasn't survivable. However, the passenger was still alive, still strapped into the passenger seat and somewhat dazed.
"We have to get him out. Come on!" Karla leapt out of her Warthog with Williams following close behind. Tarin stayed on and manned the turret just in case.
"We don't have much time!" Williams wailed. "Those Wraiths will be on top of us in seconds!"
"Then shut up and help me!" Karla was already trying to yank the unconscious Marine from his seat. Williams bent down and helped loose the safety restraints.
"We've got company!" Tarin said.
Karla turned and saw the first Wraith slowly making its way into the plaza. It caught sight of the Marines and began to orient itself to fire on them but suddenly exploded in blue flames.
"You owe me a drink." Wrall said smugly as Shiela reloaded its cannon.
"Just keep those Wraiths pinned down!" Karla tossed the unconscious Marine, a Private Arms, into the back of her Warthog and leapt into the passenger seat and yelled, "Get us out of here, Williams!"
Williams quickly climbed into the drivers seat and gunned the engine as two more Wraiths began to push their way into the plaza, firing their plasma mortars indiscriminately.
"You're gonna get us killed, Williams! You're gonna get us killed!" Karla said as Williams tried to weave his way around the obstacles in his path and the plasma bolts chasing him.
"I'm sorry if I'm not trying hard enough!" Williams plowed the Warthog straight into a storefront, sending glass and concrete flying everywhere.
The Wraiths suddenly lost interest in the crashed Warthog and concentrated on Shiela.
"Ummm, Scottie?" Wrall eyed the incoming Wraiths nervously.
Scottie slammed his foot down on the petal and Shiela shot backward in full reverse. There were several thuds as the tank smashed through several walls. A plasma bolt landed in front of Shiela, temporarily blinding the crew. Kazi fired a shell in response, but the shot was wide and the Wraith continued its pursuit.
"Great shooting there, Kazi. I now remember why I put my life in your hands." Scottie snorted.
"Fuck you, Scottie." Kazi said without pulling her eyes away from her sights.
"I wish." Scottie retorted.
"You can bicker after we kill that damn Wraith!" Wrall said loudly. "Scottie, get us somewhere with more space! Kazi! Hit the damn thing!"
Meanwhile, back in the plaza, Karla and her small team were still stranded in the store they crashed in. While one Wraith pursued Shiela, the second one was milling about in the plaza, which meant that they weren't going anywhere.
"Well, any ideas on how to get out of this?" Williams sighed.
Tarin shrugged. "We can wait for the tank to come back."
"You can't be serious, placing our lives in the hands of that hunk of junk?"
Arms groaned as he slowly began to regain consciousness. He glanced around blankly and asked, "What the hell just happened?"
"Your Warthog was hit and we pulled you out of it." Karla said sternly.
"Then where's-" Arms stopped as realization suddenly hit him.
"We managed to pull you out alive." Williams said sadly. "But the rest of your crew wasn't so lucky."
Lost for words, Arms slumped down against the wall, mouth open in disbelief.
"Should we do something?" Williams asked.
"No." Karla said, trying to keep the edge in her voice. "He'll get over it eventually. Right now, we have to concentrate on getting rid of that Wraith."
"How? Last I checked, we don't have any anti-tank weaponry, and a 30mm cannon isn't much good against a tank."
Karla grinned. "Oh, poor Williams, you fail to realize the wonders of On-Site Procurement."
"I don't understand what you're trying to say."
Karla picked up a satchel filled with Covenant plasma grenades. "I got these while we were picking Arms up. Placed correctly, I'm sure there's enough explosive in here to take down a Wraith."
"How about getting close enough to that bad boy to plant the explosives?"
"See, that's one of the perks of being a commanding officer. You get to order other people to do the dangerous work for you."
Williams glanced at Tarin and said glumly, "I have a bad feeling about this."
New Mombasa
"Sam?" Leo stared at the new rifle in disbelief. "What. The fuck. Is that thing!"
"This," Sam said with a positively devious grin, "Is the SRC700 'Earthshaker' Sniper Rifle."
There was an awkward pause until Leo continued. "And…?"
"You really have to keep up on your firearms knowledge." Sam sighed. "Unlike the standard-issue sniper rifle we all know and love, this baby here fires not just 14.7mm sabot rounds, but solid 14.7mm rounds. To put in simple terms, standard rifles shoot supersonic needles, and this shoots supersonic miniature cannon rounds."
"So, I assume it's pretty lethal then."
"Lethal?" Sam laughed. "This stuff is designed to punch through several inches of reinforced titanium A. It's supposed to take down tanks. Five round capacity, and a barrel packed with shock absorbers and springs to compensate for the monster recoil. Plus, it's limited production, so you almost never see any of these around."
Leo narrowed his eyes. "And Paccone got this… how?"
"I don't care, as long as I get to shoot this thing! If it can take down tanks, imagine what it can to a Grunt!" Sam caught the disapproving look in Leo's eyes and continued, "Though it was a little more than creepy when he mentioned my mom and Karla having it."
"Maybe you should ask him about it." Leo suggested.
"I'm pretty sure there are plenty of questions involved here that don't really need to be answered." Sam retorted. "Besides, I'm not complaining."
Leo sighed.
Meanwhile, Paccone had linked up with the other Marine unit that had assisted them earlier. They were hiding out in yet another anonymous, abandoned office complex. The fellow Marines nodded to each other in recognition before Paccone made his way to the man he assumed was in command.
"Sergeant Paccone, 102nd, C Company." Paccone introduced himself.
"Sergeant Alvarado, 405th, A Company." The other Marine replied. "You don't know how goddamn glad we are to see you. We've been down here fighting off the Covvies but the bastards won't give up."
Paccone took a quick look at Alvarado's squad. "I see that the way you're equipped, you're a recon squad. Hunting anything in particular?"
"As a matter of fact," Alvarado slapped a map down on a nearby desk and continued, "We've been tracking these Scarabs ever since they've hit the dirt. They've been designated Moe, Curly, and Larry."
"Cute names." Kumi grinned.
"Hey, I'm not the guy who makes this stuff up." Alvarado retorted. "Anyways, the Scarabs have split off, and we lost track of Moe in Old Mombasa. We've been tasked to follow Curly, while another squad is tailing Larry. I'm not quite sure what theirs status is though. With all the interference and jamming, everything's all garbled up, though I've been hearing rumors that the Master Chief is with them."
"Well, where else will he other than in the middle of the biggest shit-storm ever?" Paccone looked at the map. "Any plans?"
Alvarado grinned. "If Curly keeps going the way he is, he'll end up in the middle of this large boulevard here." He pointed at a large red strip on the map. "With it's size, there's no way a Scarab can maneuver."
"I think I see where you're going with this, and I like it." Paccone smiled.
"First, we post a couple of snipers on either end of the street to pin down any infantry support Curly might have. Then, we wait until it passes under these pedestrian bridges and then rappel down right on top of it."
"What? Is that it? No harpoons or tow cables?" Leo said jokingly.
""I believe you're thinking about the wrong kind of robot." Alvarado responded coolly. "Now let's get moving. We still have to get into position and we don't have much time if we want to cut off that Scarab."
Old Mombasa
"Ready for this?" Williams asked.
"Why are you asking me? You're the one who's going to have to make the run." Tarin said.
"And you're the one who's supposed to throw the smoke grenade so the Wraith can't draw a bead on me!" Williams said angrily. "I really can't move that fast if my body gets fused with the pavement!"
"Relax, Williams. It's not like it's the first time we took on a Wraith." Karla said matter-of-factly. "Toss it, Tarin."
With one smooth motion, Tarin lobbed the smoke grenade around the corner. The canister hit the ground and rolled to a spot right under the Wraith before it exploded and released a cloud of thick red smoke.
"NOW!" Karla yelled.
Williams sprinted down the plaza right across the front of the Wraith as Karla made a beeline for its rear. Blinded, the Covenant tank began firing random shots until it caught sight of Williams running past it. The tank immediately began to turn in an attempt to track the fleeing Marine. However, it didn't see Karla sneaking up to its vulnerable rear.
"Any second now, Captain!" Williams gasped as a plasma mortar landed several dozen meters behind him. "Preferably before I die!"
Karla was already behind the unsuspecting Wraith as she pulled out the satchel of plasma grenades. She grabbed a handful of the alien explosives, activated them, and the slapped them onto the rear of the Wraith. The high-tech sticky bombs adhered to the surface and began to glow brightly. Karla slapped the rest of the plasma grenades onto the hull and dove for cover.
The resulting explosion literally vaporized the entire rear portion the Wraith's hull and exposed the machinery and crew within. Taking advantage of this sudden vulnerability, Tarin and Williams rushed in and filled the smoldering crew compartment with automatic fire, giving the crew inside little mercy. Meanwhile, Karla merely lay on the ground, dazed and shellshocked from being so close to the explosion.
"Now you know why many Marines swear by the virtues of on-site procurement." Karla said proudly as Tarin and Williams helped her up.
Meanwhile, the situation in Shiela was not going quite as well. The cannon shell misfired, which meant that Shiela's main gun was effectively useless. Now it was just a matter of trying to get out of the Wraith's line of fire.
"Come on Scottie, keep us moving!" Wrall ordered.
"Move us WHERE?" Scottie yelled in frustration. "It's a goddamn alley! There's nowhere to move TO!"
"Keep your eyes on the goddamned road!" Wrall shouted.
"What-"
There was a sudden jerk as Shiela punched through a brick wall and came to a sudden stop, engines dying from the strain. Wrall squinted as the dust cleared in order to get a bearing on his surroundings. He gasped in surprise, but was beaten to the punchline by Scottie.
"Uhhh, this place looks awfully familiar, sir."
In the chaos of the chase, Shiela had made a complete circle and ended right back at the plaza from where she started from.
"Well, that was totally unexpected." Shion shrugged.
"Uh guys, did forget about the HOSTILE TANK THAT'S CHASING US?" Kazi yelled.
As if on cue, the Wraith pushed it's way into the plaza and aimed it's mortar straight at Shiela.
"Shit! Kazi, take it down!"
"Turret power's down! I can't aim!" Kazi said, panic creeping into her voice.
It didn't take a genius to see that Wrall was in trouble. Without thinking, Karla sprinted for the Wraith and leapt onto its side. In one fluid motion, she drew her plasma sword and punched it into the side of the Wraith. The alien tank suddenly ground to a halt. Whether by skill or just dumb luck, Karla's thrust had executed the driver of the tank. Without hesitation, Karla then gouged open a huge hole into the crew compartment of the Wraith. She grabbed a handful of grenades from her belt and rammed them directly into the tank.
She started to run, but the grenades went of prematurely. The force of the blast sent Karla crashing to the ground, hard.
Karla smiled weakly. "Looks like you owe me a drink, Wrall."
Then everything went black.